Rabbits Bite Spartans

Delta pulls out a miracle play in final seconds of game to snatch victory from Emery

Vallyn Bernard

Last Friday night was true football weather at Emery High School. It was cold and pouring the rain with the players battling it out on a soggy, muddy field.
Talking with one of the Emery coaches before the Oct. 5 game he felt the inclement weather was a plus for Delta’s ground attack.
“Delta may only pass two or three times the whole night, their game plan is based on running the ball,” he told me.
Well, the Rabbits didn’t do very well running against the Spartans, as the defensive line and linebackers did an outstanding job shutting down Delta’s ground attack. However, two big passes proved the demise of the Spartans.
On Delta’s second play from scrimmage the Rabbit’s quarterback tossed a short pass to a wide open receiver sprinting across the middle, who then raced untouched 66 yards for a touchdown. With the extra point good, Emery was down 7 to 0 in the blink of an eye. No problem for the Spartans as they slugged it out in the rain to allow Chance Ariotti to punch in two touchdowns from inside the five yard line in the second half to give Emery the lead 12 to 7 with only a few minutes to go in the game.
In a driving downpour Delta then moved the ball down to Emery’s three yard line where they had a first and goal. Again the Spartans dug in for one of their famous goal line stands and held the Rabbits on two attempts up the middle. A holding call and huge sack on third down put the Rabbits on Emery’s 29 yard line. Fourth and goal from the 29 yard line, only seconds left on the clock. It was down to Delta’s last play. Everyone knew a pass was coming, and that the Spartans would be dropping seven defenders back into coverage. Things didn’t look very good for the Rabbits, not even the weather as the rains came down even harder. Time out called.
So what are you going to call with 4th and 29, pouring rain, howling wind, and the ball weighing about 20 pounds from soaking in water all night. No way your quarterback has the arm to chuck the ball all the way into the end zone with it being so wet and heavy. On top of that Emery will be on an all out rush to force a quick pass. As I said, not looking too good for Delta. Still, you have to run a play.
On the snap, everything starts out just like clockwork for Emery. The Spartan rush forces the Delta quarterback to pass quickly, basically just launching the ball down field. Seven Spartans have dropped into deep coverage, so everything looks perfect. It’s pretty simple now, the ball can fall incomplete, be intercepted, or caught short of the goal line and then have the receiver tackled to end the game. It all seemed quite cut and dry in flash flood weather. Instead, one of those dream come true moments happened.
Every player dreams of hitting the homerun in the bottom of the ninth inning, make a shot at the buzzer, or catching a pass with no time left on the clock to win the game. The ball was passed early, there’s a driving rain and hard wind in your face, it’s an away game, 4th and 29 yards to score, last play of the game, and to make it even worse, the ball is coming down eight yards short of the end zone. Emery has everyone back in coverage; it’s over for Delta. At least that was my feelings standing in the rain watching the play unfold. Vegas would have been laying some pretty good odds on anything happening other than Emery winning the game.
Remember that dream come true thing I mentioned, one of Delta’s receivers somehow got lost in the chorus of Emery defenders, and found the ball coming down out of the rain and lights on the eight yard line. Then before anyone realized what had happened he was in the end zone with his arms raised high. A dream had come true for Delta and the Rabbits had a surprising hero. This young man had not caught a pass all night, but one was enough to provide a memory for a lifetime. Tell me what young man hasn’t had that dream.
Sadly it had to be a player from the opposing team to have such a wonderful moment, but after all, this is sports. Everyone works hard to be their best, and when something wonderful happens we as fans should be able to appreciate the moment.
The Spartans lost a heartbreaker 14 to 12, on a miracle play, and to pour salt into the wound, it was a region game. The Spartans dominated the game against the Rabbits, but in the end a team that wasn’t supposed to do anything in the air scored on two huge pass plays. You may not always win, but you can always play hard. The Spartans did that, and have no reason to be ashamed of this loss. Sometimes the ball just bounces the wrong way.
This brings Emery’s overall record for the year to 5-3, and in region play 1-2. This Friday is Homecoming for the Spartans against North Sanpete. It should be a good game, with plenty of emotions. Hopefully, Ryne Jones will be armored up again; I feel his teammates have missed him as much as he has missed being on the field. You may lose a few battles, but it’s the final outcome that matters, and this season isn’t over. Emotions come from more places than just the field, so don’t forget your battle flags.

Tennis team ends season on high note

Courtney Reynolds

The Spartan Tennis Team ended a good season last week. Although not as many matches were won this year as last, Emery took third place at region with wins from singles player Whitney Saupan, who was beat only by Juan Diego and North Sanpete.
Doubles teams Adrien Weihing and Whitney Allen, and Melanie Frisbee and Holly Hatch also took home third place medals.
Emery also did well at state. Whitney Saupan lost in her second set to Hurricane. Whitney Allen and Melanie Frisbee won their first match and faced up against the state champion doubles team from Ogden. The score of their match was first set 6 to 1 and second set 6 to 2. This was the highest that any of the teams scored against Hurricane.
Coach Tom Hansen said Megan Singleton, a senior, should also be recognized. She played first singles for most of the season, a difficult place to play but one where Megan did well. According to Coach Hansen she never got angry over a match and always did her best, something he respects her for.
Emery High will only lose two players that have played since they were sophomores for next year’s season. Tennis had a lot of talented new people come out for the team this year. They also have many juniors that will be going into their third season next fall. Coach Hansen said he is excited for next year’s team.